How Align Clients Are Using Their Cash to Drive Impact
Co-authored by Align Impact & StoneCastle
When we talk about impact investing, we often think about private markets, venture funds, or green bonds, but rarely about cash. Yet, for many investors, cash represents a meaningful portion of their portfolio — sometimes sitting on the sidelines, often underperforming and/or uninsured waiting to be deployed.
At Align Impact, we’ve always believed every dollar is an opportunity to align your portfolio with your values. And through our partnership with KEEP by StoneCastle, we’ve eliminated the word “idle” from the cash conversation and turned it into an active force for good.
The Hidden Power of Cash
Cash doesn’t have to be passive. When strategically placed through a network of community-focused and mission-aligned depository institutions, cash deposits through StoneCastle’s KEEP account:
Support underbanked communities through deposits in minority depository institutions (MDIs) and community development financial institutions (CDFIs);
Fuel local economies by providing banks with the capital they need to extend loans to small businesses, affordable housing projects, and sustainable infrastructure;
Promote access and financial inclusion, helping bridge the wealth gap in historically marginalized communities.
For many of Align’s clients, this approach reframes liquidity, not as a waiting room, but as a tool to contribute to the world their wealth is building, where financial security and social good coexist.
From Passive to Purposeful
Through the KEEP platform, Align clients’ cash is seamlessly allocated into a network of community banks, MDIs, CDFIs, and low-income designated credit unions across the country — all while maintaining federal insurance up to $100 million per tax ID, overnight liquidity, and competitive returns.
This means:
A family office focused on affordable housing can keep its cash balances circulating through banks that lend to low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.
A foundation supporting racial equity can ensure its reserves are reinforcing the same values it champions through its grants.
A climate-conscious investor can prioritize community banks funding renewable energy projects and resilience initiatives.
Redesigning Incentives, Reimagining Impact
As Charlie Munger once said, “Show me the incentive, and I will show you the outcome.” Our financial systems are shaped by incentives, and when we shift those incentives toward a more responsible allocation of resources, the outcomes shift too.
Consider the following:
65% of all deposits in the United States sit at the top 25 largest banks; 39% of those deposits are at the top five banks; and 31% of those deposits are at the top three. (Source: S&P Global Market Intelligence)
That 65% represents more than $11 trillion concentrated on the balance sheets of just 25 institutions. Now imagine the good even a small fraction of those deposits could generate when allocated through a solution that reaches hundreds of banks and thousands of communities simultaneously. The result would be a meaningful shift in outcomes, where the depositor potentially gains a better rate, more insurance (less risk), and the confidence of knowing that the same cash is expanding access for the underbanked, supporting loans to farmers, affordable housing, infrastructure, health services, and more.
Cash impact investing challenges the idea that impact is limited to high-growth or high-risk assets. It invites us to recognize that every financial decision, even the most “conservative,” carries the potential for positive change.
This isn’t about perfection; it’s about participation. As we navigate the messy middle of redesigning a financial system that works for all people and the planet, every choice matters — including where we keep our cash.
The Future of Cash for Impact
Our collaboration between Align and StoneCastle is rooted in a shared belief that finance can be restructured to serve broader economic, human, and community growth.
We envision a future where liquidity supports opportunity, where cash flow strengthens communities, and where capital, in all its forms, is designed to benefit not just the few, but the many.
At its best, impact investing isn’t just about growing wealth. It’s about redirecting the flow of capital toward the world we actually want to live in. And increasingly, that begins quite literally, with cash.
Disclaimer: Align Impact is an investment adviser registered with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Registration as an investment adviser does not constitute an endorsement by the SEC, nor does it imply any level of skill or training. This post is provided for informational purposes only and should not be construed as an investment recommendation. The information provided is believed to be from reliable sources, but no liability is accepted for any inaccuracies, except to the extent such liability arises from a breach of duty Align Impact owes to you as an investment advisory client pursuant to the terms of such relationship (should such a relationship exist). Past performance is no guarantee of future performance.
